Gameplay Improvements
Improved Weapon Switching
When players switch between ranged weapons, the animation and switching times have been reduced, providing a snappier and more responsive experience when firing two shots. The time between firing two ranged weapons is now one second.
Previous guards that forced players to observe the full duration of weapon wield animations when switching between ranged weapons have now been removed, allowing players the freedom to cancel animations when moving through the world. While players can once again cancel these animations, they will still experience a one-second gap between firing two weapons.
Weapon Animation Improvements
Wielding any ranged weapon from stowed is now faster, allowing players to react more quickly in combat.
Players wielding a weapon while jumping or falling will now see the wield animation at the correct speed. The result is a more consistent visual read for when a weapon is ready to fire.
Players attempting to aim down sights while crouched will now stand with their weapon able to fire much more quickly.
Addressing Extended Loading Times
Improvements have been made to how players load back onto their ship after leaving the Ferry of the Damned or when travelling large distances using a mermaid.
These improvements should provide a much more consistent experience when returning to the ship, and address the common causes of loading screens becoming stuck. This should also reduce the frequency of seeing glowing green skeletons for an extended duration after returning to the ship.
Loading optimisations have been introduced, targeting lower-spec hardware. These should improve the loading times experienced on lower-spec console, PC and handheld devices.
Reaper’s Chest
Crews unlocking the Vault at the Fort of the Damned will once again discover Reaper’s Chests within the treasure hoard.
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Immerse Spatial Audio Integration
Immerse Spatial Audio has now been integrated into Sea of Thieves, providing enhanced depth and precision to the world when playing with headphones. This experience has been fine-tuned by the teams at Rare and Embody for the Sea of Thieves soundscape.
Players can enable Enhanced Headphone Mode with a Generic Profile for free within the game settings.
To enable a personalised audio experience, players can purchase the Immerse Gamepack from the Pirate Emporium or from Enhanced Headphone Mode in the game settings to create a Personalised Profile. Purchasing the Immerse Gamepack will also unlock the Coconut Headband in-game cosmetic.
All players are offered a 14-day free trial of the personalised audio experience from Enhanced Headphone Mode in the game settings. After the free trial has expired, players can still choose to enable the free Generic Profile.
Players who create a Personalised Profile can now choose to have their facial scan deleted directly from the Embody page after completing setup.
Pirate Emporium
Show off your personal style with purchases from the Pirate Emporium! Pick up exclusive cosmetics such as ship liveries, costumes, weapons, pets and emotes using your Ancient Coins, purchasable with real money. Head to the Pirate Emporium to browse and buy the latest additions!
New Items – Now in Stock!
False King’s Ransom Ship Collection and Ship’s Crest
False King’s Ransom Weapon Bundle
False King’s Ransom Crown, Jacket and Boots
King’s Ransom Jacket and Boots
Inner Sanctum Ship’s Crest
Hear No Evil Emote (free!)
Highborn Variety Ship Bundle (mixed bundle of existing items)
Outpost Cosmetics
New Outpost Stock!
The shipwrights have restocked with the new Purple Resolute Hull, Sails and Flag.
The Outpost shops now offer the Regal Hound equipment and instruments.
Fixed Issues
Gameplay
Players with the Midnight Blades Hat equipped should no longer find they appear invisible within the front-end menu, or appear without clothing when arriving in the world.
When other players are observed swimming underwater or on the surface, their pirate should now be consistently orientated in the correct position. This should address a recent regression to hit detection and visual issues for swimming players.
Further visual improvements have been made to water effects to ensure a smooth, consistent transition when diving or surfacing.
Crews approaching a defended Sea Fort should now consistently find the Fort’s cannons firing at player ships.
Reaper Warrior’s Urns can now be placed inside Treasure Chests.
The Villainous Skull of Ancient Fortune retrieved from the Sunken Kingdom can now be stored inside Merfolk Statues.
Further improvements have been made to Merchant Alliance and Hunter’s Call representatives to rectify consistency when purchasing resources. While players may still occasionally experience issues following this update, this improvement should reduce the frequency of purchases failing.
‘The Quest for Guybrush’ – The training dummy in the Trial of the Sword now reacts properly to regular attacks and allows the Tall Tale to be progressed.
‘Heart of Fire’ – Mercenary Skeletons will no longer freeze in place if given the Mysterious Key during this Tall Tale.
Reaper Fortresses
Crews approaching an emergent Reaper Fortress should no longer find the Event ends abruptly.
Environment
Items from a Weapons Cache within a Reaper Fortress can no longer be grabbed through the walls at Kraken Watchtower.
Hatches found in Royal Crest Fortress should now be accessible unless purposefully covered by environmental dressing.
Improvements have been made at Hidden Spring Keep to address incorrectly placed environment dressing.
Players can no longer walk inside parts of the environment within the Hideout at Wanderers Refuge.
User Interface
Players are prevented from purchasing Ship’s Crests within the Pirate Emporium if they do not yet own a Captained ship.
The Quest Table now shows the correct ‘New’ icon on the Smugglers’ Route Run Voyage once unlocked.
Visual and Audio
Music within Smugglers’ Hideouts now plays at the intended volume.
Black Powder Barrels once again produce smoke effects after exploding.
Players should now appear to hold Gunpowder Barrels correctly when playing at a high field of view.
Food placed into cooking pots should now consistently remain visible while cooking.
The Brethren’s Masquerade Flag now displays correctly when equipped on a Brigantine.
The Skull of the Banished is now placed correctly on the ground when dug up.
After throwing a knife, players should no longer feel the camera bob unnecessarily.
The pattern on the Alter Ego Hull is now aligned throughout the ship when equipped.
The Paper Cutout Emote now has a smoother transition effect.
Ashen Age Tall Tales – Players should no longer experience audio issues affecting certain parts of these Tall Tales when playing on lower-spec hardware.
Text and Localisation
The Wrecker of Reaper Fortresses Commendation now displays the correct text in all languages at Grade VII.
The Alter Ego Cannon Flare description no longer contains a typo.
Localisation has been improved for set names within the Pirate Emporium across Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese languages.
Performance and Stability
Performance improvements have been made to how Treasure Chests are created and loaded by players, addressing a noticeable hitch affecting all players nearby.
Performance optimisations have been made to the Horn of Fair Winds to address framerate issues affecting nearby players when in use.
Further improvements have been made to game stability to reduce scenarios where players unexpectedly exit the game or become disconnected from their session.
Known Issues
To learn more about known issues in Sea of Thieves currently being tracked and their status, head over to our Known Issues support site article.